The Incident
by LtsGoAdventure
Summary: Mikey shouldn't have. He REALLY shouldn't have. Now how is going to get his brothers out of this one?
1. Oh Shell

**The Incident**

 **First fic in a really long time. I'm eager to get past my writer's block though! And who doesn't love some turtle love?**

 **Except there's no love in this story.**

 **Anyways I hope you enjoy! I don't really plan on this being too long. If I finish it I'll feel like I'll have accomplished something haha!**

 **Warning: this story. I apologize in advance.**

 **Disclaimer: I own nothing but the idea and story. Unfortunately T-T**

* * *

Mikey knew there was a reason why Donnie tried his hardest not to let him in the lab. Why all the jars and test tubes inside were labeled to the point of being near baby-proofed. He knew it and he ignored it and now he had an enormous problem on his hands.

Literally on his hands. Gnawing at his thumbs; trying to claw up his arms and possibly gouge out his eyes.

Well...maybe enormous wasn't the right word for it. After all, his brothers were actually kind of small. Like...baby turtles before they were smothered in mutagen small. And angry. They were really, _really_ angry.

~x~

It all started with a moment of boredom, shortly followed by a moment of clarity, then complete and utter stupidity.

Thursday nights were dull to begin with. Casey and April were busy with school and couldn't hang out as much as they could on the weekends. Patrols were short, training long, and the decreasing amount of Foot ninja in the streets unsettling. Master Splinter spent much of his time in deep contemplation and it was pretty much rule around the lair that he was never to be disturbed unless it was an emergency or he chose to emerge on his own accord.

Donnie, who was almost always seeking solitude in the confines of his lab, actually sat on a couch watching TV. Or he had been. Soon he was watching the daily night drama of Leo and Raph trying to bite each other's heads off. Mikey didn't know how it happened. All he knew was that by the time he finished playing with Ice Cream Kitty in the freezer and snagged the snacks he was sent to retrieve, the TV was off, Donnie was slipping into his lab, and Leo and Raph were having a competition on who could shout the loudest.

"I'm tellin' you they're UP to somethin'! We should be out there gettin' answers before it's too late!"

"Too late for _what_ , Raph? We can't jump to conclusions!"

"I can't take sittin' here anymore! That's all we ever do nowadays! Sit, eat, sleep, train. I'm sick of it!"

"If you're so antsy then train and cool your head. You riling everyone up isn't going to solve anything."

" _I'm_ rilin' everyone up? That's real rich _Lame-o-nardo!"_ At this point Raph had turned, heading for the turnstiles out of the lair and into the sewer. Leo followed like a harping parent.

"And where do you think YOU'RE going _hothead_?"

 _"_ I'M GOIN' TOPSIDE!"

And then they were tugging and pushing at each other like a pair of squabbling kids-which honestly they were- leaving Mikey to stand in the middle of the foyer with a bit of irritation seeping in his gaze.

Whatever happened to not disturbing Master Splinter? Psh! And they scolded _him_ for being loud.

So Mikey, with a bowl full of popcorn, had rolled his eyes and stepped into the fray. " _Dudes_ , NOT COOL!"

Raph and Leo had stopped and looked at him, startled by the loud interruption. Mikey had glared at them, making sure his annoyance with them was clear as day. He couldn't help but be somewhat proud of himself for making his brothers flinch. Mikey didn't get angry a lot. But when he did everyone was usually taken aback.

"I thought we were gonna watch a movie together," Mikey went on to say, dropping the bowl of popcorn onto the couch as he passed. Some of it scattered onto the couch and floor but he ignored it, glaring wholeheartedly at his older brothers. "I finally got Donnie to quit hiding in his lab like some hermit and you two RUINED it with all your stupid fighting."

At the mention of Donnie the two looked apologetic. They separated, glaring one last time at each other, before walking off to different parts of the lair.

Leaving Mikey alone with only the chatter of the TV and bowl of popcorn for company.

Mikey had sighed, plopping on the couch and feeling very much like a frustrated mom. It didn't take long for boredom to settle in. Nothing good was on TV, and watching Space Heroes wasn't as fun when there was no one else to enjoy it with. Even movie-watching, which he _loved_ to do, seemed pointless. Mikey had wanted to spend time with his brothers, laughing and joking around.

Alone like this it just wasn't the same.

Which roused his brain into stirring a good half an hour later. Why couldn't he _make_ his brothers get along? Donnie was a genius. He had to have thought of making a serum or regent at some point that could get Raph and Leo to shut up. Even if he _hadn't_ made something like that yet, _Mikey_ could easily step up. He wasn't genius smart like Donnie by any means... but he was _creative_ smart and sometimes that produced results even better than a logical experiment!

Mikey had turned off the TV then, excitedly leaping to his feet. An evil smile crossed his lips.

To Donnie's lab he went!

* * *

Of course Donnie wouldn't let him inside.

Of course.

He should've known.

Mikey stared at the cold metal doors of Donnie's lab, then stepped back, already racking his mind for a way to get in and out. All he needed was Donnie's laptop so he could look up information on serums that would put people in cheerful moods. God knows Raph would need about a hundred extra doses of that thing.

Then it dawned on him. A gleeful smile spread on Mikey's face. He dashed out of sight down the end of the hall, then employed one of his lesser known skills: voice throwing.

"Oh _April?_ What a lovely surprise! I didn't know you were stopping by for a visit! What? _You wanna to see Donnie_? I don't know Ape, he's been pretty silent all night. I'll just tell him you stopped by and-"

The lab door slammed open so fast Mikey wouldn't be surprised if it jammed. Donnie, clearly thinking Mikey and April were conversing somewhere near the entrance of the lair, ran in its direction. Mikey wasted no time afterwards, dashing into the lap with a critically searching eye.

There! On the desk!

Mikey ignored the bunch of small, possibly important, test tubes and beakers gathered around the laptop. He tucked the precious piece of technology beneath his arm, then turned to leave.

" _MIKEY!"_

Wow and Mikey had _not_ been expecting Donnie to come back so fast. He must have really sprinted to accomplish that. And he looked furious. And embarrassed. Probably because he was easily tricked. And didn't get to see April. Ha.

Mikey sheepishly grinned from behind his brother's desk. "Oh _heyy_ D. Did April leave already?"

Donnie stalked towards him with a rage normally reserved for enemies who had injured one of their brothers. Mikey shrunk back against the wall.

"I'm gonna take that as a yes. Well- I see that I'm in your way so I'll just leave and-"

Donnie stepped in his path, blocking all escape. His eyes flitted from Mikey's face to his laptop under his younger brother's arm. "Mikey..." he dangerously began. "What are you doing with my computer?"

Mikey innocently glanced between Donnie and the laptop. "This thing? I was just, um, you know-" He didn't finish, opting to spin in the other direction and bolt from around the desk. Donnie was scarily fast, seizing him by the shell mere inches from the door.

"Give it back!"

"No way, bro! I need this!"

"Mikey, I'm WARNING _YOU-!"_

"IT'S FOR YOUR OWN GOOD! YOU'LL THANK ME LATER!" Mikey yelled, trying desperately to twist out of Donnie's vice-grip. But his brother had ridiculously strong wrists from years of practice with the bo staff. So Mikey went limp and let his dead weight throw Donnie off-balance. Thankfully it worked, allowing Mikey to throw his brother over his shoulders.

Donnie hit the ground with a thud so loud it echoed. Mikey apologetically smiled.

"Sorry, D."

He made it one foot out the door before Donnie swept his feet out from under him. Mikey hit the floor. They were both on two legs again within the next second, warily circling one another in the lab as if they were in the dojo about to spar.

Donnie's eyes narrowed. He lunged. Mikey tried to leap back but moved too late.

Soon they were tugging on either end of the laptop, trying desperately to keep it in their possession.

"Mikey you're being _ridiculous-!"_

 _"_ I'm telling you to back off, Donnie-!"

"It's MY laptop!"

"Just let me borrow it-!"

" _NO_!"

And that's when the laptop went spinning like a frisbee out of their hands, crashing magnificently into all the beakers and tubes on top Donnie's desk. The chemicals collided, miniature explosions resounded, and colorful puffs of dust were left clouding the room. Mikey stared horrified. Donnie stared horrified. And they continued staring horrified until the first pink cloud of dust began seeping into their eyes and making it burn.

"MY _LAB!"_ Donnie shrieked.

Mikey stepped away, eyes wide, hands raised, because this was _not_ how he wanted this to go at all, and all he wanted was for Donnie to be happy but now it looked like Donnie was going to have a mental breakdown instead and it was all _his_ fault and-

" _Get out_."

Donnie's voice was deathly quiet.

Mikey gulped. "H-Hey, I'm sorry Donnie I-"

Donnie whirled around and shoved at his plastron. "I said _get out!"_ he yelled.

"What's going on? Is everything alright?"

Of course Leo and Raph would have to show. Of course they would. Mikey tried to make himself as small as possible in the darkened hall of the lair as his older brothers stepped past him and into the mess that was the lab.

"Donnie calm down," Leo was saying, setting a hand on the younger turtle's shoulder.

" _Calm down?_ I spent _weeks_ on these mixtures, Leo, _weeks_ and he just came in and _ruined_ it-!"

Now Raph was shaking his head at Mikey through the door and Leo was glaring and Donnie was nearing frustrated tears and...

Well. At least they weren't angry at each other anymore. Just him.

The lab doors were shut in his face with a stern, "Stay out", from Leo.

* * *

Several hours passed.

At first Mikey had lingered outside the hall, listening with worry whether or not Donnie had actually cried and trying to gauge how mad his other brothers were at him. But it soon became apparent they weren't leaving any time soon. And even if they did, seeing him standing there wasn't going to make them any happier. So he went to his room and laid on his bed, staring at his ceiling.

He didn't know how long he was there before his stomach growled. Warily he left his room and headed for the kitchen. Donnie's lab was silent. The lair was void of any of his brothers. Either they were hiding from him or they would doing a really good job of keeping quiet. Either way Mikey didn't like it.

He ate a cold slice of pizza in silence.

By the time he was leaving the kitchen and contemplating ways to make things up to Donnie, Master Splinter had left his room and wandered in. His brows arched in surprise.

"Michelangelo. I thought you were going to watch a movie with your brothers."

"Me too," Mikey mumbled. He straightened up under his sensei's curious gaze. "Uhh, but plans changed. What are you doing, sensei?"

"I find myself in need of a cheese pop."

"Oh cool. Well I'll just..." Mikey started to inch out the kitchen. Master Splinter set a hand on his shoulder.

"My son... is something the matter?"

"Donnie and I kind of had a fight. And I think the others are mad at me..." Mikey admitted. Resolve settled in his eyes. "But I'm gonna fix it. Right now."

Master Splinter nodded, a small smile gracing his lips. "See that you do."

* * *

Which is why an hour later Mikey stood outside Donnie's lab with a fist half-raised. He'd heard _nothing_ , absolutely _nothing_ , the entire hour he stood outside. Of course during that time he'd been trying to figure out what to say once he got inside, but his thoughts had quickly derailed as to why it was so dang _quiet._ Did they fall asleep or something?

"Donnie?" he hesitantly called, finally knocking on the door. "Donnie listen... I'm really, really sorry! I swear I didn't mean to mess things up!"

No answer. Well he kind of expected that.

He knocked again. "Donnie you can't ignore me forever! I mean- you could- but it would really suck! C'mon bro..."

Still nothing.

"I'll do your chores for a month!" He struggled to get out the next words. "Or- or even _longer_ if you want... Donnie? Leo? Raph?"

Okay this was getting _silly_. He got they were mad but the least they could do was shout at him to go away and not give him the silent treatment for so long. Honestly he was surprised Raph hadn't said anything yet.

Mikey steeled his nerves, ready for the worst of lectures, and pushed open the door. It groaned loudly in protest.

The lab was empty save for the pungent smell of all the chemicals Mikey had caused to explode into the air. He fought the urge to puke.

"Aw gross, this place _reeks!_ "

He glanced around. None of his brothers were to be found. Mikey frowned. Did they leave? No way. He would've heard the door. Mikey warily wandered the lab, a heavy feeling of dread in his gut for no reason he could place.

Man...he really did a number on the place. There was broken glass everywhere. And horrid green and blue stains seeping into the tiles.

Wait.

Why hadn't it been cleaned?

Sharp pain suddenly rocketed through his leg. Mikey yelped, hopping on one feet. Bright red blood splattered. He made a face at the shard of glass wedged between two toes, reaching down and yanking it out. It clattered to the floor.

"Ow," he quietly mumbled. He cautiously set his foot down, grimacing as it ached.

Mikey stared at the ground for a while longer, attention locked onto three pieces of colored cloth. Awfully familiar colored cloth. The pile of cloth shifted. And Mikey froze.

Three turtle heads.

Now Mikey might not be the sharpest tool in the shed but it didn't take a genius to connect the dots. And unless Donnie had been creepily keeping a bunch of turtles in his lab as pets, these three turtles could only be one thing.

His _brothers_.

He sputtered for a moment, having to rub at his eyes several times to confirm what he was seeing.

His brothers were turtles. Actual turtles. Like the ones people would buy at pet stores and feed lettuce and keep in tanks. They fussed and swung their heads around, locking their tiny, beady eyes onto his legs. One floundered on its back. Mikey hesitantly reached out and righted the turtle, trying to figure out which brother it was.

Donnie, he thought as his fingers touched the small turtle's shell. Somehow instinctively he knew.

Donnie crawled slowly, as if he didn't know how to use his own four legs. Mikey watched him for a moment before turning his attention to the other two turtles, tangled helplessly in their headbands. He carefully pried them out and set them near Donnie. Raph was bulkier than the others. Leo's shell was darker than the others. It wasn't hard to tell them apart.

It was hard to accept what had happened.

Mikey scooped them in his hands, terrified, bewildered, and in awe of their sheer cuteness all at once.

"Oh shell."


	2. I Might Not Be

**A/N: Thanks for all the support so far! It's encouraging to see haha.**

 **Silly me, I should have mentioned what verse this takes place in! I enjoy both the 2003 and 2012 versions but for the purpose of this story it takes place in the 2012 one between season 2. Yeah... I probably should've mentioned that before... I have to say my writing this has made me realize how RUSTY I am hahaha. Hopefully I'll get back into the swing soon.**

 **Sorry! :D**

 **Because of my job updates will come probably only once a week. Sorry about that too ^-^**

 **Well I hope you enjoy the story anyway~**

* * *

I Might Not Be Donnie But...

* * *

For what seemed like forever Mikey knelt on the floor, the echo of his last words looping endlessly in his head. _Oh shell..._

"This has to be a dream," he mumbled, trapped in a daze.

One of the turtles, now on his shoulder, bit down on his flesh _hard_.

Mikey flinched. "Ow! _Raph!"_

Raph snapped a few things in his ear but Mikey couldn't make sense of the odd clicks and noises. He was partially glad. Who _knew_ what curses the turtle was spitting out?

Leo, trying to turn his thumb into mince meat, stopped gnawing long enough to snap at Raph. Raph snapped back and before Mikey knew it, the larger turtle had leapt from his shoulder and tackled Leo to the floor.

Mikey sighed, his concern replaced with disbelief as he watched them roll along the tiled floor. What could they even be _arguing_ about? He pushed to his feet, noticing that Donnie had remained mostly quiet in his hand the entire time.

"Donnie," Mikey whispered, bringing the smaller turtle close to his face. "You're not mad at me too, are you?"

His brother gave him the blankest look he had ever seen on a pet turtle. Spike had his moments for sure- before he mutated into Slash- but Donnie just took the cake.

"Okay, so you are," Mikey shoulder's drooped. He lowered his arm and glanced around. "But how did this happen?" he wondered aloud. They hadn't left the lab since they kicked him out and their reactions were much too severe for it to be some sort of terrible prank. And who would prank themselves like this anyway? Mikey paused.

Well, maybe he would've, but it was ruined now. There was no way _anyone_ would find it funny after this.

Mikey stood still, thinking very hard. Then it hit him.

"No _way_!" he gasped, swiveling his head around. His eyes fruitlessly searched the ceiling for any traces of bright, unusual color. The only explanation he could think of was the chemicals that had spilled in the earlier scuffle with Donnie. Those were some _large_ threatening clouds. They burned his eyes too- he clearly remembered. But he hadn't been exposed for a long time.

Donnie shoved him out the lab. Leo slammed the door.

Mikey gazed awestruck at the ceiling. For the first time ever his brothers' anger had saved him.

Donnie began stepping in an agitated manner on his palm. Mikey quickly came back to the present.

"I'm really sorry, D. I'll- I'm gonna do my best to fix this." Mikey gently set his brother on top a nearby stool. He glanced around for his other brothers, realizing that having two small turtles tussling on a glass-covered floor was a little dangerous.

He found them easily. Leo and Raph looked like they had worn themselves out, lying subdued beside one another near the door. He hurried over and picked them up. They didn't protest; anger seemingly spent. Mikey was beyond grateful.

He also set them on the same stool as Donnie.

Now what to do?

"I'll start by cleaning the lab. Then I'll tell Master Splinter. Or maybe I'll fix you guys first before telling him... yeah, that sounds like a much better idea. I won't tell him because I won't need to tell him. Because you'll be back to normal."

Mikey nodded to himself in satisfaction.

Master Splinter would never need to know.

Ever.

* * *

Mikey scrubbed at the floors until they were spotless.

The repetitive motions and mindless labor gave his thoughts time to rest, collect themselves, and line in order. It was one of the only reasons why he had managed to stay this calm. At least on the outside. On the inside his stomach was a storm of wild emotions and churning nausea. He wanted to throw up. Really, he did.

He'd been a nervous wreck the entire time he was outside the lab, sneakily grabbing a bucket, broom, and rag from their cleaning supplies.

The thought of being caught by his sensei had driven him to near madness. He'd knew what he'd see in his sensei's eyes. Disappointment. Anger. Resignation.

Master Splinter counted on all of them to put an end to the Foot ninja and Shredder. To protect their home and their friends. How could any of that be done with his brothers like this?

Mikey's gaze trailed over to where his brothers sat anxiously on the stool. They hadn't moved really moved for the last thirty minutes, mostly because they _couldn't_. For the most part they'd been trying to figure out a way to get down from the stool without toppling to untimely deaths. Donnie however, almost always the exception, kept staring at Mikey.

Probably to make sure he didn't mess anything else up.

Mikey tossed the rag he'd been cleaning with into the bucket, and snatched the broom leaning against the nearest wall. Now to sweep the broken glass...

He stopped for a moment, feeling as if he'd forgotten something very important. But as quickly as the feeling came it disappeared and didn't come back. A little unsettled, Mikey carried on with his self-assigned sweeping task.

Eventually, once the glass was swept and the floor was a bit safer for his brothers to walk on, Mikey took them off the stool. They began crawling right away. Crawling towards him.

Mikey tossed the broom aside and cooed at them with open arms. "D'awww! Are we gonna hug this out guys? 'Cause I know I could use a hug!"

Raph halted, looking horribly disgusted. It was such a familiar reaction that Mikey couldn't help but laugh. In fact he _kept_ laughing. And laughing. And laughing.

Now all his brothers had stopped crawling, looking at him in alarm. He knew how he looked, probably like a madman, hunched over with his hands over his knees as he succumbed to a fit of wild amusement. But he couldn't _stop_.

His brothers were so terribly different yet completely the same. He could see it in his head as clear as day.

Three baby turtles barely bigger than the palm of his hand, trying to wield their weapons, and scarf down a slice of pizza, and watch TV, and skateboard. They'd be so helpless! He'd have to carry them on patrol and maybe use them as shuriken to attack the Foot ninja and Shredder. Sparring was out of the question. They'd be crushed under Mikey's clumsy feet in an instant or skewered like a shish kebab by one of Raph's sais.

Something tentatively prodded his foot.

Mikey, wiping tears of laughter from his eyes, glanced down. Leo tilted his head at him.

"Don't worry bro," Mikey reassuringly said. "It's all good! You guys are turtles now- for real! And it's real funny 'cause I can't stop laughing, you know? HAHAHAHAHA!"

Leo spun circles on his foot, bewildered squeaks escaping from his tiny beak.

Mikey's laughs eventually tapered off. He breathed a little harder than normal, wiping at his face again. If his brothers never turned back he'd have to do a lot of things alone for the rest of his life. April and Casey were awesome for sure, and Ice Cream Kitty was seriously the best, but without Leatherhead around there was really no one who could handle his excessive energy and _not_ get annoyed.

His brothers were always there; always had been. They were a presence he relied on to be there forever. A life without them was unimaginable.

Three baby turtles barely bigger than the palm of his hand...somehow it wasn't very funny anymore.

As if some force above had suctioned all the life force and energy from his limbs, Mikey slumped to his knees, then rocked onto his rear. It took nearly all his strength to fold himself cross-legged, where he proceeded to cover his face with a hand and try not to cry.

Aw man... _Aw man_.

He couldn't do this alone. He couldn't hide it.

He had to tell Master Splinter.

 _He'll be so mad he'll skin me alive_ , Mikey silently groaned. There was movement on his leg. He peered through his fingers.

Leo climbed on top his knee. He sat there, unmoving, looking into Mikey's eyes.

Mikey's shoulders slumped. "I really screwed up this time huh?"

Leo made an odd squealing noise.

Mikey stared. "I'm don't know what to take that as. We'll say yes for now." He slowly stood, shifting Leo into his hand. He allowed his oldest brother to perch on top his shoulder, before stooping to gather a rather solemn looking Raph and Donnie. They were staring extremely hard at him. So hard it was kinda scary.

"Um...dudes? You're kinda freakin' me out. Could you maybe stare at something else?"

They ignored his request. Feeling as if giant holes were being drilled into his head, Mikey warily placed them on his other shoulder and then trudged off to tell his sensei the truth.

* * *

That _had_ been the plan. Instead he stood inside the dojo, rooted to the floor in front the sliding doors separating him from his sensei. He wanted to announce his presence, really he did. But truthfully speaking he was still terrified. Also there was a good chance Master Splinter already knew he was lurking outside. It was just a matter of who would make their move first.

Raph kept grunting and snapping at his jaw.

"I know, I _know!_ " Mikey quietly hissed back. "I'm musterin' up the nerve. Don't distract me!"

Donnie stepped halfway on top of Raph, effectively drawing the hotheaded turtle's attention from Mikey. It was a funny sight, and Mikey would've snickered had he been anywhere else.

"Thanks Don," Mikey cheerfully whispered. Quite suddenly the door he stood in front slid open.

"I have sensed a disturbance within you and your brothers for quite some time Michelangelo. What seems to be-?" Master Splinter abruptly cut off.

Mikey gazed wide-eyed up at his sensei. His sensei gazed back with equally large eyes, taking in his son's petrified guilty expression and the three turtles riding on his stiff shoulders. Many dots connected simultaneously within his mind, though the answers they revealed were none he wanted to readily believe. Master Splinter's face hardened.

"Michelangelo."

"H-Hai sensei..." Mikey nervously chuckled. "I- I can see from the slightly murderous look in your eyes that you wanna know what happened. Well don't worry, Master Splinter, I can tell you what I _think_ happened. And then you'll find it really, really funny, just like I did!"

And so, before his sensei could berate him, Mikey spilled the entire story as he knew it. From their ruined planned movie night, to Mikey's actually terrible genius idea, to Donnie's destroyed lab, and the giant colorful clouds of who _knows_ what somehow managing to transform his brothers into pre-mutation form.

He left out the parts about his uncontrollable laughter and tears though. Master Splinter didn't need to know about _everything_ right? Ha ha...yeah... But from the way his sensei was looking at him now maybe admitting to those things would've made the oncoming storm a lot tamer. He swallowed hard.

"Umm...Master Splinter I..."

"Is there a way to turn them back?" his sensei cut him off.

"I...I don't know. I just finished cleaning the lab. I thought maybe you..." Mikey hesitantly trailed off. "I don't know what to do sensei. It can't be permanent right?"

"You ask a question I have no answer for." Master Splinter stroked his beard. "This is troubling indeed. When we last spoke you so confidently said you would fix things between yourself and your brothers, but you have only made things worse."

Mikey slouched, ready for the harsh scolding. He deserved it; he knew.

"Your may have meant well with your intentions however they have backfired in one of the worst ways. In the midst of such trouble concerning the Foot and the Shredder, a setback such as this..." Master Splinter sighed and shook his head. "Michelangelo..."

He said nothing more. And somehow that felt a thousand times worse.

Mikey kept quiet as his sensei took his brothers into his paws. He studied the turtles the same way Mikey had, seeking to discover who was who. As he did so Mikey drifted off in thought. Fix things... He had promised he would fix things multiple times. He'd be the biggest liar if he didn't. But he wasn't smart like Donnie. He didn't know _how_ to and neither did his sensei. If it'd been Donnie in his place...

"If it was Donnie..." he repeated aloud.

"Michelangelo?"

Mikey, unaware that he'd been staring with fierce intensity at the floor, blinked and met his sensei's inquiring gaze. "Master Splinter," he firmly said. "I know I screwed up big time and there's nothing I can do to change that fact. But I can't just let my brothers be turtles all their lives! Pet turtles. Not the other kind of turtles because they were already the other kind of turtles. Er- the mutated ones. I said before that I would make things right. I mean it, sensei. I will. I might not be Donnie, but I will fix this."

"Michelangelo." Master Splinter regarded him with an unreadable look. Mikey's eyes flitted quickly to the turtle seated slack-jawed on top of his sensei' head.

"I...I'll need Donnie anyway though," he sheepishly admitted. "'Cause he knows a lot more of stuff. And he might know where to start. And um..."

"Michelangelo," Master Splinter said again. His features softened. He reached above him and gathered Donnie in his paw, extending it to Mikey a moment after. "I trust in you. Do what you feel needs to be done. I will meditate on this and take Leonardo and Raphael off your hands for the time being while you work with Donatello. We will find a way through this and overcome. "

Mikey's eyes watered terribly. He left Donnie crawl onto his palm. "Sensei..."

Master Splinter turned to leave, but paused midway through his sliding doors. "You will still be punished of course for this...mishap. But all in due time."

Mikey's face lit up to an unimaginable, blinding degree of brightness. "Hai, sensei!"

Everything would be okay now.

* * *

Except it wasn't.

Inside Donnie's lab was cold and dim. Without anyone working inside it seemed lifeless, and eerily like one of those hospital rooms he'd seen in horror movies. He quietly made his way to the laptop on the desk, comforted only by the weight of his brother on his shoulder.

"This is seriously creepy," he whispered. "How can you work in a place like this all the time?"

Donnie chirped something in his ear.

"Cool," Mikey replied. "I totally couldn't understand you."

Donnie chirped something again, far less pleasant than before. Mikey grinned. He couldn't understand his brothers perfectly but he could read their mannerisms and tone to some degree. If Donnie could speak he probably wouldn't have said anything at all and would've just rolled his eyes.

Donnie rolled his eyes a lot. Almost as much as Raph. They could probably give each other a run for their money if they really tried.

Mikey plopped himself behind the desk that had once been stacked with dangerous beakers. He swiveled in the chair twice before stopping and hauling the laptop close. In a few seconds he had it booted and running and found himself staring into a password screen.

"Now what would your password be...?" Mikey pondered. Donnie crawled down his arm until he was near the keyboard, pacing in a surprisingly anxious way. Mikey grinned. "No need to be embarrassed, D. _Unless..._ it's an embarrassing password! Like the name of your favorite brother you never wanted him to find out! M-I-K-E-Y!"

Could turtles scowl? Because his brother was doing a very good job of making it look like they could.

Mikey grinned wider. "I'm just messin' with you. I'm not _that_ dumb. Everyone knows what your password is." He chuckled and punched in five letters. "For a genius, you're so predictable."

Donnie bit down on his thumb in retaliation.

Mikey didn't flinch, overcome with giggles at the sight of his brother's background image. "I knew you were creepy, Don. I knew it and accepted it. But a picture of April eating _pizza?_ When did you even take this?"

Aww. Donnie was doing the scowling thing again. Mikey took mercy on his poor, essentially defenseless, brother. Instead of teasing he went and found the Word Document Processor he knew his brother liked to organize his thoughts in. A blank document opened up, leaving a blinking tab.

"Isn't this smart of me?" Mikey asked. "I figured we can communicate this way. You still have your genius brain inside that tiny noggin of yours, don't you?"

As if ceased by a sudden surge of madness, Donnie climbed on top the keyboard and began stomping on the keys he wanted to press. Or tried to anyway. With four legs he ended up creating a document that read: **uihesjgiobnfk dscfdnh**.

"Donnie, Don, D-!" Mikey carefully picked his flailing brother up. "You can't type like this. You're just hitting all the buttons at once."

Donnie ceased struggling, looking forlornly at the keyboard. Mikey sighed. His brother looked so sad. And pathetic. But mostly sad. Were turtles supposed to look so expressive? An idea suddenly struck him. A good one too, if he might say so himself!

"I got it! How about I just hover you over the board and you nudge your head towards which key you wanna push?" Mikey suggested. "That'll work, right?"

Donnie swung his head to meet Mikey's gaze. Then he bobbed his neck in agreement. Mikey awed and rubbed his cheek against his brother's.

"You're so adorable! Man if only you could see yourself ha ha ha!"

Donnie struggled to pull away.

"Still the same ole' Donnie," Mikey joked. "I bet if April hugged you, you wouldn't care."

Donnie floundered even more than before. Mikey continued to laugh and joke, feeling much better. The familiar sense of teasing brought him some ease. With a small, cheerful smile he grasped his brother in both hands and held him over the laptop. His brother wasted no time in pinpointing what keys he wanted to hit. Mikey quickly punched them in. It took ten minutes but at last Mikey and Donnie were able to effectively communicate. Words showed up small and blinking on the Word Document.

 **"I can't be sure what happened. There are no traces of the chemicals left that we inhaled. We're lucky at least _one_ of us didn't change. We would've never been able to tell Splinter unless he came looking for us himself** ," Mikey haltingly read aloud. " **Of course, none of this would've happened if _you_ hadn't come in here in the first place." **

Mikey sighed at the accusation. And at the fact that even in a situation like this his brother took the time to add punctuation and italics to his sentences. "Donnie look, I know it's my fault. I'm really sorry too. I'll say it a hundred times if it'll make you believe me."

Donnie wriggled in Mikey's hands. Back towards the keyboard it was then!

 **"You don't have to apologize. It's not completely your fault. I just"**

Donnie stopped moving, looking utterly defeated.

"Donnie?" Mikey whispered. His brother's head went towards the keys again.

" **It will wear off."**

Mikey frowned in confusion. "Whoa! How do you know that, D?"

Donnie squirmed his neck over certain keys again.

" **I don't**. **You'll just have to believe it is because there's no way I can concoct any sort of antidote in this state. And without any samples of the inhaled chemicals I can't investigate what reacted with what to cause this.** "

Mikey flatly looked at Donnie. Donnie flatly looked back.

" _Ugh_ fine," Mikey rolled eyes. He leaned back in the chair, unable to keep back the panic he had squashed earlier. "You say it'll wear off but you don't know for sure. So what am I supposed to do? Just sit around and wait for you guys to turn back? What if you guys never do? Am I- am I gonna have _turtles_ for brothers for the rest of my life?!"

Donnie clawed at his hand.

"Yeah, I know you guys are already turtles. I meant pet store turtles," Mikey retorted.

Donnie didn't react to that. In fact he just sat in Mikey's palm, silent in thought. Though Mikey had to wonder just how much his genius brother could process now that he wasn't mutated anymore. It was clear he had the same intellect; Raph and Leo too. And all three could understand him perfectly. Maybe their unmutated forms really _were_ temporary- like Donnie said they were!

He sure hoped so. Because if not...

Mikey raised Donnie to eye-level, hopeful and a bit scared. "I talked real big to Master Splinter about how everything was gonna be okay. I even said I'll fix things. But how can I if there's nothing to fix? Donnie, please tell me it's gonna be okay," he pleaded.

His brother hesitated, then slowly turned and indicated he wanted to see the keyboard again.

" **I wish I could**."


	3. Even If It Takes

**A/N: Sorry it took so long to update. Things have been really chaotic at my job this week haha!**

 **Again, I just wanted to say thanks for the feedback and reviews. I'm excited to keep going knowing I'm doing something alright!**

 **Enjoy ^v^!**

* * *

Even If It Takes Forever

* * *

Mikey left Donnie's lab no more confident that he was than when he first went in. His brother rode comfortably on his shoulder as if he'd been there all his life; the small weight a constant reminder of his blunder.

What exactly was he supposed to tell Master Splinter again?

 _'Sorry sensei, but Donnie says he doesn't know much either and to have faith it'll wear off. But if it doesn't I guess they're stuck like this forever! HAHAHA-'_

Yeah no.

Somehow he didn't think that would go over too well.

He entered the dojo and crossed over to his sensei's room. "Master Splinter…?" he hesitantly called.

The door slid open a brief moment later. Master Splinter gazed down at him expectantly, his gaze warm and two turtles on his head.

"Michelangelo," he greeted. "You came back sooner than I expected. Did you find anything out?"

Mikey shifted on his feet, fighting the very strong urge to look around the room. "Um…not really. Donnie says it'll wear off in time but we're not sure how much."

Master Splinter raised a brow, stroking at his beard. "You spoke with your brother?"

Mikey immediately lit up, exuberantly explaining his genius idea of using the laptop to communicate. He also shared his thoughts that his three turtle-turned brothers retained their intelligence—though he didn't say it in that 'Donnie-like' manner. It was more like:

"They're still smart and stuff! Well…except for Raph. But you know he wasn't very smart to begin with."

On top of their sensei's head, Raph's glower promised death. Mikey sheepishly laughed and hurriedly finished.

"So yeah…! That's about it!"

"I see." Master Splinter carefully scooped the turtles off his head. He fondly gazed at them before offering Leo and Raph his way.

"Master Splinter?" Mikey questioned, confused.

"I believe they would be better kept in your company," his sensei explained.

Mikey just stood there and stared, eyes wide, mouth hard pressed not to open. Master Splinter was _trusting_ him with his brothers? Did his sensei forget who was the cause of all this mess in the first place? Why would he even think of giving the responsibility of taking care of his brothers to Mikey?

…Oh. So that was it. Master Splinter wasn't trusting him. He wanted him to take responsibility for the trouble he'd caused. Of course that was it. Why would his sensei go back to trusting him so easily?

"Michelangelo."

Master Splinter's calm voice broke through his thoughts. Mikey blinked, refocusing his attention ahead. His sensei smiled, if not a little exasperatedly.

"I give you your brothers not as a punishment, but because I know you will take care of them."

Whoa! How did he know what he was thinking?

Master Splinter sighed. "You are speaking aloud, Michelangelo."

"Oh. Um," Mikey awkwardly laughed. "Yeah, I knew that!"

"You think I do not I trust you?"

Mikey shrugged, shifting anxiously on his feet. "…I dunno. I messed up big and…and I really couldn't do a lot about it."

Master Splinter fixed his youngest son with a soothing gaze. "One mistake does not dictate the extent of who we are. Or our capabilities. It is what we do _afterwards_ that defines us. Remember this well, my son. In a situation such as this, all we can do is wait. And sometimes, waiting yields the best results."

Mikey slowly raised his hands and cupped them together, palms out. He was silent; waiting.

Master Splinter smiled in approval. He deposited Leo and Raph into his palms where they sat blinking up at their youngest brother. After a long moment of gazing back at them, Mikey finally lifted his gaze to give his sensei a smile.

"Thanks Master Splinter. You're the best!"

His sensei set a hand on his youngest son's shoulder. "It is late, Michelangelo, and much has happened. Get some rest. Tomorrow is a new day with new problems. You will need your strength."

Mikey bowed his head. "Hai, sensei."

Master Splinter smiled with no hint of malice or disappointment in his eyes, leaving Mikey to walk away with a heart beating lighter than before.

* * *

Mikey bypassed the lair and went straight to his room. Donnie and Raph rode on his shoulders while Leo took the highest vantage point on top his head.

He thought about watching TV on the couch but decided against it. It was pretty late— nearly one in the morning— and he was all tuckered out. _Bummer_ , Mikey wistfully thought. And a new episode of Space Heroes was supposed to come on.

Leo would've liked to watch it. But Mikey was more than a little wary of leaving his brothers on their own; helpless and defenseless as they were. What if Leo toppled off the couch and died? He couldn't let that happen!

"Sorry bro," he apologized, looking up as if he could see Leo's face. He could imagine very clearly his big brother looking towards the television with forlornness.

He stopped in the doorway of his messy, terrifying-looking room. He could practically hear the screams of protest from his older brothers as they pawed agitatedly at his bed.

Mikey scoffed at them. "You guys are overreacting. It's not that bad!"

Something shifted beneath his bed.

Mikey stepped back and shut the door. "Nope. Not tonight." He set his hands on his waist and cheerfully grinned, trying very hard not to think about the possible turtle-eating monster lurking beneath the depths of his bed.

Donnie's room, right next door, was the second option.

He pushed open the door, warily looking around for any triggers or traps. His older brother was sometimes _too_ cautious. Thankfully there were no surprises waiting to smack him in the face. There _were_ , however, a bunch of textbooks, beakers, and parts of technology scattered in all corners of the floor.

"Dude…now I know why you won't let anyone in your room. It's just as messy as mine!" Mikey exclaimed. "There's no way I can sleep in here. Something might explode... or turn me into some kind of freaky monster!"

He quickly closed the door. So not his room and not Donnie's. That left only two other options. As if reading his mind, Raph began grunting and stomping on his shoulder. Mikey raised an arm and tapped him on the head.

"Don't worry Raphie, I'm not gonna bother going into your room. Because you'll kill me. And I don't want to die." He cheerfully began marching towards the last bedroom across the hall.

"Well Leo, looks like we're bunking in your room, bro."

* * *

Leo's room was freakishly clean. Excluding the posters and action figures of Space Heroes lined in his shelf and along his walls, there wasn't a single piece of trash that littered the sewer floor.

Man… his brother must get really hungry at night. Mikey usually always had a box of half-eaten pizza from several days ago strewn near the foot of his bed. Maybe he'd say something about it tomorrow. Tonight he intended to sleep.

Mikey let his brothers down on Leo's bed. Raph immediately attempted to conquer a mini sheet mountain, struggling to raise his claws out of the synthetic fibers the sheets were made of. Mikey left him to his own devices, not bothering to stop his snickers. His gaze wandered to his genius brother; opting to sit and wait on the edge of the bed in the same spot he'd been placed.

"Such a good boy, Donnie~" he cooed.

Donnie glared at him. Mikey broadly grinned, whistling innocently as he averted his attention. A moment later his brother crawled onto his leg, staring expectantly up at him. He scratched his head in confusion.

"You want somethin' I'm guessing… lemme think…" Mikey's eyes brightened. "You're hungry!"

Donnie shook his head 'no'. Mikey frowned, tapping at his chin. Donnie rolled off his leg, onto the bed sheets. He floundered on his back before Mikey took pity and turned him upright. His brother shuffled away faster than Mikey had ever seen. Poor fellow. He must've been _really_ embarrassed.

"Happens to the best of us, Don," Mikey called, smiling.

His brother paused and shot him a vicious look.

"Whoa! Scary!"

Donnie continued to give him the stink-eye for a second longer, then he swung his head round front and kept moving along. Mikey watched Donnie make his way over to a nearby book thrown beside Leo's pillow with an extremely complicated title printed in German along its spine.

"I didn't know could read German, Leo," Mikey marveled aloud, searching for his older brother. He caught sight of Leo inching around the corner of his pillow. Leo seemed to be fascinated by the opening in the side of the pillow case, poking his head in and out.

Mikey hummed in amusement, hands on his cheeks as he watched Leo disappear inside his pillow. The small turtle lump settled in the middle, seemingly at ease.

"My big brother is _sooooo_ adorbs," Mikey mused. He returned his gaze to Donnie who had finally made it to the book. It was kind of cute but mostly sad how hard his brother tried to flip the book open with his tiny head.

Wow! Look at that! For once Donnie was using his head and it wasn't working. Mikey laughed a little, then carefully picked the struggling Donnie up and set him on his lap.

"Okay, bro. I get it. You want me to read this thing."

Donnie twisted eagerly on his legs.

Mikey snickered, reaching over to snag the book. "Man, if I'd known you guys liked being read to at night, I would've come to your rooms and tucked you in more often."

Whoops. There came Donnie's stink-eye again.

Mikey hummed to himself as he skimmed the book's first page. Then he firmly shut the book. "Right. Not readin' that."

Donnie visibly wilted. Mikey comfortingly rubbed his brother's head with a finger. "Sorry D. The only language I know is 'awesome'. You'll learn it one day. You'll learn."

Donnie reared back his head, glaring.

Mikey smiled as his brother promptly rolled off his leg and onto the sheets. Leo was still inside his pillow, unmoving and content. Maybe he'd fallen asleep. Mikey almost squealed at the thought. Leo would think back on this later and realize he could never live this down!

Wait. Could turtles suffocate?

Mikey leaned over and retrieved his brother from the depths of the pillow.

"Let's not go in there, okay?" he said, setting Leo beside Donnie. "I don't wanna crush you when I go to bed. Speaking of which…" Mikey zoomed to the door and flipped off the lights. It was dark in the room but not so dark that he couldn't see.

He carefully climbed into the bed, aware that Raph was nowhere to be seen.

" _Raaaph. Raaaaaaaph!"_ he loudly whispered. "Where are you dude?"

Something cold pressed into his neck.

Mikey jerked, startled. Sure enough when he rolled his head to the left, Raph was there staring at him with a petulant frown. Huh. Mikey felt his own lips turn down. He didn't know turtles could frown.

"What's the matter?" he asked.

Raph turned his head away—a move so similar to those bashful teenage girls he'd seen on TV shows that Mikey just couldn't resist.

"Ohhh, I see…" Mikey grinned. "You want me to read you a bedtime story too? Gotta tell you, the first one didn't go so well."

Raph was doing the glaring thing again. However the cuteness far outweighed the terror Raph was trying to inflict. Before the small turtle knew what had happened, Mikey had him up in the air, tossing him up and down as a parent might do to their child.

"Who's the cutest thing in the world? Is it you? Yes it is!" he loudly gushed. He caught him lightly in his hands then pressed the biggest, sloppiest kiss to Raph's poor, disoriented head. "Wasn't that fun?"

Mikey _thought_ he heard the sound of distant sobbing but that was just crazy. Turtles couldn't cry!

Giggling to himself he slumped down in bed, settling Raph on his stomach. Donnie and Leo watched from near his feet, beady eyes filled with terror. Mikey inwardly shook his head. Nah! There was _no way_ they were scared of someone like him. They were probably jealous of Raph.

"You guys want a turn?" he offered.

Their heads swung back and forth so fast he was afraid they'd given themselves whiplash. Mikey merely smiled. "Suit yourselves." He laid flat on his back in the bed bed and pulled the sheets carefully over his shoulder, making sure Donnie and Leo didn't tumble off. Then he listened to the sound of silence and small clicks, no longer fighting the heavy fog creeping across his mind.

His eyes fluttered shut.

"G'night bros," was all he whispered before dozing off to sleep.

* * *

 _Dark. And cold._

 _Why was it so cold?_

 _Mikey stood in darkness, a deep frown on his face. There was nothing around him; no one near. Silence reigned. He started to walk—or tried to. His foot was lodged in place. He tried to lift his other leg. It too remained stuck._

 _Fear began to swell._

 _He lifted his head, eyes frantically searching for someone—anyone to come._

" _Guys…?" his voice was a cracked whisper that echoed and faded then turned to dust. He raised the volume. "Guys? Donnie? Leo? Raph? Are you here?"_

 _He heard a loud crunch. A sharp pricking pain rocketed through his foot. Bewildered he dropped his gaze to the black abyss that was his ground. He was startled to see a cut in between his toes, steadily bleeding out. Mikey's furrowed his eye ridges, suddenly overcome with vertigo. The world was spinning. He attempted to raise his leg again—to run; to stumble._

 _His foot came right off the ground, and crushed beneath his bleeding toes laid the broken remains of three small shattered shells._

 _Mikey opened his mouth—and_ screamed.

* * *

He woke to urgent pawing on his face. He brushed his cheeks with a hand, blinking in alarm when his fingers came back wet. Was he _crying_?

The great Michelangelo didn't _cry!_

Except after the incident in the lab happened earlier. But that didn't really count. Only a couple of tears leaked out and that was just because his eyes were sad. Not him. Of course he also cried if Raph ate the last slice of pizza. And if Leo hogged the TV. And that one time when Donnie tried to experiment on Ice Cream Kitty for 'science'.

It was one of the only times Donnie and Mikey had actually argued _for real,_ with Mikey screaming that trying to melt one of his best friends was murder not 'research'. Donnie would never know whether or not Ice Cream Kitty would still be Ice Cream Kitty even if they'd been turned into an Ice Cream Milkshake.

Mikey blinked back to the present. The clammy legs on his face hadn't gone away. His eyes drifted.

Leo sat close to his chin, perched on his plastron. He was looking at Mikey in concern. Or maybe it was hunger. Honestly, it was hard to tell. He was only ever sure with Raph. The murderous aura his big brother emitted was actually quite impressive. Not that he'd ever tell him that.

"Did I wake you?" Mikey asked, hating the hoarseness of his voice.

Leo answered by dragging his tiny body onto his chin then settling over his beak. It tickled, and despite the cold fingers creeping through his chest, Mikey giggled.

"There's no getting you off, is there?"

Leo made some sort of odd squeak.

Mikey smiled a small smile and slowly closed his eyes, feeling safer than before. Leo was here. Leo would stay. His big brother was still his big brother, no matter what form or size.

He wondered briefly where Donnie and Raph were. Two shuffling noises beside his head answered the unspoken question. All of his brothers were here—together. No matter what adversaries they faced they would remain whole—together. Master Splinter was right. They would overcome. Even if it seemed to take forever.

And that was more than enough to lull him back to sleep.

~x~

Mikey jolted awake several hours later, sweating in terror. "How are you guys gonna use the bathroom?!"

* * *

 **A/N: I'll do my best to get the next update on time, by next week Tuesday!**


	4. Somewhere In His Mind

**A/N: My job FINALLY ended. I'm so so sorry for the late update! These last few days were chaotic and I never got to sleep before 3:00 am before having to wake up at 7:00 and starting all over again. But now I'm free hahahaha!**

 **Enjoy the chapter~**

* * *

Somewhere In His Mind

* * *

Friday morning dawned slowly on the Hamato household within the sewers.

For the longest time there was the sound of shuffling, ripped tape, and desperately clacking keys. Frustrated groans and exasperated sighs followed.

"There's no other _way_! You _have_ to!"

More clacking.

"Donnie that makes no sense. This is for your own good, bro!"

Furiously pounding fingers stabbed at the keys again.

"Yeah. I know I said that before. 'Cuz it _was_ for your own good. Don't fight me on this, D. Last time you were unmutated. Do you wanna turn back into an egg next?!"

" **That's ridiculous, Mikey."**

Said orange-banded turtle scowled at the three words blinking before his eyes. Then he lifted Donnie away from the laptop and turned him so they were glaring eye-to-eye. "Is it, Donnie? Or is it so ridiculous that it _has_ to be true?"

The look his brother gave him was more than enough of an answer. Mikey tossed Donnie aside. His brother squealed as his small body made contact with the couch cushion beside them. Pretty confident Donnie would survive, Mikey fixed his frustrated attention on his other brothers. "Are you guys gonna give me trouble too?" he began to chide, like a parent berating their children.

It wasn't quite how he wanted his morning to go. In fact he was hoping to wake surrounded by his perfectly back-to-normal brothers. Well—as back to normal as three giant talking weapon-wielding turtles with an obsession of pizza and a rat for a sensei and father could be. Although it would've been weird to wake with Leo's butt on his face, seeing how his oldest brother really _hadn't_ moved off his beak the entirety of the night.

Some good things had come out of this after all.

But any hope of a peaceful day had been ruined once Mikey attempted to build his three brothers a temporary bathroom.

First off it was crazy to let them use a regular toilet! What if they fell in? They'd get washed away and join those terrifying Squirrellanoids in the underground of the sewers! Then he'd never get them back. He had no more popcorn to spare! Speaking of popcorn, where did it all go? He could've sworn he had another two bags hidden in the cabinet. Had something snuck in and took them? Something or someone like… _Rahzar?!_

No, no. That was beyond stupid.

At that moment Mikey had sucked in several deep breaths, attempting to get his wandering attention back on track. His groggy older brothers had nestled on Leo's bed together then, watching blearily as Mikey moved in and out of the room, carrying a multitude of supplies. None protested when Mikey gathered them in his hands and trotted towards the living room where they had come across the current set-up.

Beside the sofa, on the floor, was Donnie's laptop, whirring idly and opened to a neat, blank document. Next to the laptop was a large cardboard box entirely closed off except for a small opening on its narrow side, granting entrance inside its dark depths. Mikey had placed his three brothers on the ground in front the box, then sat cross-legged to address them in his most serious voice.

"There's no other way to do this bros, but it has to be done." Mikey properly cleared his throat, gaining bewildered looks from his brothers. "We are all animals in this animal-filled world. That means we do what animals normally do—which Donnie's book on animals in his lab told me!"

It was at this time that the small genius turtle gave Mikey a narrowed-eyed suspicious look.

"I didn't touch anything!" Mikey immediately protested. "'Cept the book. 'Cuz I saw it and wanted to touch it. _Anyway_ ," he huffed, looking very offended, "as animals you have to eat to live. And then you have to use the bathroom to also live so you don't die. That's why I made a little somethin' for ya!" Mikey proudly gestured towards the cardboard box. "Say hello to your new bathroom! Whenever you have to go just crawl on in there."

Mikey had never—NEVER—been more afraid of Raph in his life before now. And all Raph had to do was look. That day Mikey swore he saw death—and it was just as hideous as Raph without his mask on. Maybe even more. Thankfully Donnie—bless the little genius turtle—had nudged Mikey's leg, breaking the fear-induced staring contest he had unwillingly gotten himself into with Raph. Mikey's attention fell onto his genius brother who indicated he wanted to use the laptop to communicate.

Once again it took nearly ten minutes to effectively convey the desired message. And once again it was done in near perfect grammar.

" **First of all Mikey, what did I say about going into my lab and touching stuff? What were you even doing in there? And second—what the** _ **shell**_ **makes you think WE'RE GOING TO** _ **HUMILIATE**_ **OURSELVES AND USE THE BATHROOM IN A** _ **BOX**_ **?!"**

Mikey had nearly recoiled at that, baffled. "Whoa! Ease up on the caps Don!"

Following that had been a pointless, back-and-forth argument between the two youngest siblings where nothing got done and ended with Donnie being thrown on the couch. Hence their current situation. Hence the reason why they were still here in the living room an hour later at nine in the morning with no problems resolved and only a growing migraine to show. And for once, Mikey thought, it wasn't his fault!

It was his stubborn, difficult, prideful brothers.

"I'm not sayin' it again dudes," Mikey scowled, glowering down at his siblings. "Get in the box."

Raph fixed him with a stubborn glare, then made use of the keyboard.

" **no"**

"How are you guys gonna eat?" Mikey retorted. "Think about it!"

" **were nt gnna et nimrod"**

Mikey stared at Raph. "Do you know how to spell?"

Raph twisted in his hands, showing quite clearly he wanted to be let down. Mikey complied, then turned his large blue eyes onto his oldest brother.

"Leo, you agree with me, right? It's the only way."

Leo didn't even bother to use the keyboard. He just shook his head in refusal.

Mikey threw his arms up in complete and utter frustration. "Look bros, you can't _not_ eat just 'cuz you don't wanna use the toilet. And you call _me_ immature!" he pointed to the box again. "This is awkward for all of us, okay? I don't wanna think about you guys doing your thing inside of another thing either, but it has to be done!"

* * *

Thirty minutes later Mikey and his brothers were sitting on the couch, stonily watching a rerun of Space Heroes. In front of each brother—save for Mikey—was a single piece of lettuce ripped somewhat violently from the head of lettuce in the fridge. No one touched it.

It was this bizarre situation Master Splinter walked out on, arms behind his back, slipping quietly across the floor from the dojo to the kitchen. He paused in the living room. "I see you and your brothers are up, Michelangelo," he commented.

Mikey craned his neck back to greet his sensei. "Yeah," he miserably said. "It's a great day to be awake,"

Taken aback by the change in attitude he had witnessed last night, Master Splinter concernedly frowned. "What is the matter?"

"I can't get them to use the bathroom."

Master Splinter gazed at his youngest son for what appeared to be the longest time. Soon after his gaze wandered to his three other sons. Donnie and Leo had both twisted their heads to look right back at him. Raph, however, continued to glare at the TV, as if it would magically combust into a glorious blaze of flames. Master Splinter opened his mouth to comment. Then he noticed the lettuce. His mouth fell shut.

"I was tryin' to give 'em breakfast but they won't eat." Mikey said, having followed his sensei's line of sight.

"Are they ill?"

"No. They don't wanna eat so they don't have to use the makeshift bathroom I made them!" Mikey replied, looking thoroughly put-out. "Master Splinter, can't you make 'em?" he pleaded.

Master Splinter eyed the cardboard contraption with the small crayoned sign that read 'Bro's Bathroom!' in horribly crooked red letters.

"…You should not force others to do what they do not wish to do."

Mikey thoughtfully paused. "…Does that mean I don't have to train?"

His sensei gave him a blank look. Mikey nervously chuckled and leapt to his feet.

"Just kidding! I love training!" he quickly drew his nunchucks, dropping into an offensive stance and whirling his weapons around. "See? Nuthin' better!"

Master Splinter sighed. "They will come around Michelangelo. You must realize they are still adjusting."

Mikey sighed too, shoulders dropping. "Hai…" He waited until his sensei left before shooting his smugly smirking brothers a dirty glare. He folded his arms, a stubborn frown on his lips. "You don't wanna accept my kindness? Fine! Don't go inside. But don't blame me if you die of constipation."

* * *

After the morning fiasco Mikey found himself lying on the living room floor, plastron towards the ceiling; laptop resting idly on his stomach.

Leo and Donnie were near the laptop, within close reach should they feel the need to speak. Raph was sitting as far away from Mikey as the orange-banded turtle allowed. Hunger had worn out, leading Raph to eat a small bit of lettuce, and later leaving him to crawl into the condemned box known as the community bathroom.

Mikey wasn't sure if Raph was embarrassed or enraged, but either way he was going to give his older brother some space lest the hothead try and murder him in his sleep. Raph may have been small but that didn't mean he couldn't shove things down his throat while he slept.

Meanwhile Mikey was having a small problem of his own. With no way to cure his brothers, and nothing to do but wait, he was left to own devices in the lair. He usually hung out with Raph or chilled in Donnie's lab, taking great pleasure in annoying the daylights out of them. But now it was impossible to have their familiar bicker and chase routine with his brothers like this. And it was boring. And sad. But mostly boring.

" _Ugh_! I'm so _bored!"_ Mikey complained. "No offense but it's not much fun when you guys are plain 'ole turtles." He could've _sworn_ Donnie rolled his eyes.

" **Oh** _ **I'm**_ **sorry Mikey. I didn't know we were PLAIN 'OLE TURTLES. I guess it's because someone TURNED US INTO THEM!"**

"What did I say about caps, Donnie?" Mikey retorted, hiding the hurt in his eyes. "And I thought we agreed that this was BOTH our faults."

Leo crawled between them, taking Donnie's position. A few minutes later came a very delayed response—so delayed both Mikey and Donnie dozed off in boredom.

" **Guys please arguing gets us nowhere we dont know when this will wear off so until then well just have to deal ok"**

Mikey furrowed his eye ridges in an attempt to sort out what his brother was saying. "Geez, Leo, haven't you heard of punctuation?"

" **Does it matter if you can understand what im saying?"**

"Guess not…" Mikey mumbled. He sighed. What should he do…? What _could_ he do without endangering his brothers' lives? Watch TV? Boring! Order some pizza? And eat it by himself? Awesome but totally lonely!

Well…he supposed he could mediate or train or something… but honestly Master Splinter hadn't brought anything up about it. Not that Mikey was complaining about the small vacation, it was just disconcerting was all. Maybe he should ask in case it slipped his sensei's mind…

 _Master Splinter never lets us skip training, even if one of us is sick._

Training…training…exercising…moving around…legs…

Mikey snapped upright, Donnie tumbling to the ground. "I GOT it!" he exclaimed, eyes sparkling bright. "We should go skateboarding!"

And if he saw the horrified looks his three big brothers exchanged, he thoroughly ignored it.

* * *

Mikey frowned. There were only two helmets.

After coming up with his brilliant idea to go wild in the sewer tunnels, he embarked on a brief journey to Raph's room in search of supplies. Though Raph was squeaking, grunting, and trying to claw his eyes out the entire way, Mikey had still made it into his brother's room in one piece—albeit a little more frazzled than before. Honestly, it was like his hothead of a brother had been turned into a crazy cat, not reverted to a pet turtle.

Maybe Mikey should let Raph play with Ice Cream Kitty for a bit; let him be with his own kind. Who knows? Raph might come back a whole lot sweeter! Ha!

Anyway— after entering Raph's room, Mikey had eyed the toy figures Raph had stocked against the shelves. Barbarians, soldiers, and a terribly hidden unicorn engulfed in rainbow wings, caught his attention. Not bothering to hide his snickers, Mikey tapped his embarrassed brother's head with a finger and said:

"So _that's_ why you called Donnie a magical unicorn that one time. Dude! I didn't know you liked them too!"

Raph had glared, and continued to glare. Even now he was _still_ glaring from where he had been placed alongside his other brothers on his bed.

Mikey wisely chose to ignore the death-promising look. Soon after he searched the figures for helmets big enough to stay firm on his brothers' heads. Unfortunately there weren't enough. A miniature red helmet was placed on Raph's head, while a hideously orange, brown, and purple helmet was slipped over Leo's. Neither turtle looked happy, but they were also so ridiculous looking Mikey couldn't take them seriously.

After laughing for a good ten minutes, including tears, snorts, and knee slaps that had his brothers gazing at him in worry again, Mikey settled. Donnie didn't have a helmet.

"We can't have that, can we?" Mikey happily asked, pleased to be the one in charge of his brothers' safety for once. He hummed to himself, feeling better about the entire situation he faced, scouring Raph's room for anything of use. Eventually he found a thimble with several holes convieniently stabbed into its sides, though they were uneven in size and lopsided.

Oh well. It'd have to do.

Mikey grinned and pretended Donnie _didn't_ look horrified as the thimble was carefully dropped over his small head.

Mikey giggled. It looked like his brother was wearing a bucket.

Pleased as punch, he carried the trio back to the living room, near the laptop and the couch. He quickly ran off a second later, going to retrieve his skateboard. When he came back his three brothers were huddled close together, gazing up at him. But their eyes were near invisible beneath the shelter of the helmets. He couldn't help it; it was too hard to resist.

He tossed aside the skateboard and lunged, eyes sparkling. "D'aawwwwww! Look at you!" He crushed his two oldest brothers against his cheek. "This is gonna be the best trip EVER!"

Agitated squeaking from Donnie caused him to look towards the genius on the ground. His brother was near the laptop, clearing desiring to express his thoughts. Mikey set aside Leo and Raph in order to effectively communicate with Donnie. "What's wrong, bro?"

" **Mikey I can't go anywhere like this! I can't even see straight!"**

Mikey laughed. "What are you talking about? Sure you can!"

Donnie stared up at him through the two lopsided black holes in his tin helmet. **"I'm serious, Mikey."**

"Me too!"

Leo nudged his hand, indicating he wanted to talk through the computer. Mikey carefully shooed his genius brother out the way.

" **Mikey I think Don is right its dangerous give him my helmet instead"**

"You still haven't gotten he hang of punctuation, have you bro?" Mikey sighed. "Well, at least you're better than Raph." The ensuing glare from his red-banded brother was expected. Leo went back to the keyboard.

" _ **Mikey**_ **."**

The youngest brother cheerfully perked up. "You learn so quickly!"

" **MIKEY."**

Said turtle rolled his eyes. "Alright, alright." He switched the helmets. Anxious and eager to get into the sewers before Master Splinter could leave his room and see, Mikey gathered his brothers and set them on his shoulders. Then he flipped his skateboard with a foot into his arms. It wasn't like he was avoiding his sensei. He just didn't think it would go over well if he said, ' _Oh hey, sensei, I was just gonna take my bros on a spin through the sewers. Do some flips and stuff. I mean it might be dangerous and all but I'm kinda going crazy with nothing to do so don't mind me. Later dude!'_

Yeah.

That would never work.

"Hang on tight, bros," he told them, creeping towards the turnstiles. "It might get a _little_ crazy."

His brothers made surprisingly loud noises. It _sounded_ like they were protesting the idea, but Mikey banished the negative thought. They were probably just really excited! This was going to be so cool! Mikey was almost a little jealous. It would be like riding a rollercoaster without any safety straps of seats. How awesome! So caught up in his fantasy of constructing his own rollercoaster in the near future, he failed to notice he was no longer alone.

"My son, where do you think you are going?" Master Splinter inquired, appearing at the entrance of the laid.

Mikey halted in shock, a complete look of guilt on his face. "Sensei!" He tried and failed to hide the skateboard under his arm. "I was…ummm…"

Master Splinter's brows raised as if daring his youngest son to tell a lie. He watched in satisfaction and a small amount of pride as Mikey deflated, hesitanting to look him in the eye.

"Alright. You caught me. I was…gonna go skateboarding…"

"With your brothers?"

Mikey shrugged. "They don't seem to mind." The round of clicks and chirps that came from the trio on his shoulders begged to differ. Apparently Master Splinter thought the same.

"You wish to take your brothers skateboarding," he echoed. "Small and defenseless as they are."

"Well…yeah." Mikey tried not to look too downtrodden. "I mean I can't really do anything else with them, you know? I mean I could watch TV and all but it's not the same without Leo actin' all dorky about it. And I can't play games with Raph. He sucked before—can you imagine how bad he'll be if he tried to play as he is now? He'd never live the humiliation down!"

Mikey was pretty sure his older brothers were saying something in response. Possibly plotting his untimely death. But he ignored the ominous waves his brothers' exuded, keeping a hopeful gaze on his sensei. _I need this. This normality. Please sensei. I'll be careful, I swear_ , he silently pleaded.

Master Splinter looked at his youngest son for a very long time. Then he sighed, whiskers twitching. "Just do not drop them in the sewers."

Mikey grinned and cheerfully saluted. "Yes! You da man, sensei!"

He dashed out the sewers, leaving a somewhat exasperated, but fondly smiling sensei behind.

* * *

It wasn't long before Mikey returned from the skateboarding-trip-none-would-ever-speak-about-again. Three pale, shaking turtles were huddled in his cupped hands. His skateboard was slung comfortably around his shoulders.

"We're baa~aaack!" He sang to no one in particular. "And we had a _great_ time!" He glanced down at his brothers, smiling. "Isn't that right?"

If turtles could vomit extremely far lengths, Raph would've been the first. As it were he merely rolled onto his side, looking for all he was worth like some sort of sad burrito. Donnie and Leo had just stopped moving.

Mikey awkwardly coughed, noticing the odd behavior.

Donnie had a name for it some months ago after Leo discovered his collectable Space Heroes poster that had come in a Captain Crunch cereal box had accidentally been tossed out. Shock. Donnie had related it to an effect similar to shock. Mikey vaguely recalled Raph having to lull Leo into some very weird position on the couch which involved swaddling him in blankets like a giant baby and rubbing his tummy until Leo realized it _wasn't_ the end of the world.

Mikey _might_ or might not have been involved in that incident.

Either way they didn't talk about it again.

His stomach growled. Mikey blinked in surprise. He'd been out for several hours and lost track of time—even forgetting that he hadn't eaten in a while. Man! Time sure flies when a turtle's having fun. He began bounding towards the kitchen, intending to first say hi to Ice Cream Kitty, then stuff his face. But four words stopped him.

"So where is everyone?"

Mikey froze at the terribly familiar voice. April?

"They will return shortly," Master's Splinter voice answered from within the dojo. "They went for a trip in the sewers."

"Huh." Casey. "We didn't seem 'em on the way down. Must've been running fast or something."

"Or something," came Master Splinter's dry response.

Mikey's jaw dropped. _April? Casey?_ What were they doing here? Somewhere in his mind an alarm went off, telling him not to panic, but causing him to panic anyway. Why where they here? What day was it? Friday?

Oh. That's right. It was the start of the weekend for those on the surface. Of course they'd come here. They always did. From the sounds of things his sensei hadn't told the two teens the situation yet. Good. Mikey wasn't sure why he felt so nervous. April would be surprised, but she'd taken it in stride—and Casey would probably just laugh and poke fun.

 _So how come his heart was beating so fast?_

He didn't want to see April or Casey. Not yet. His brothers appeared to share the same sentiment. They dug their tiny claws into his hands.

Footsteps crossed the dojo. They were coming! And sounding like they were having a jolly good time. Aww…how cute! And totally not his place to interfere.

Mikey hastily spun, bolting right back towards the turnstiles leading to the sewers. A cheery voice, however, made him skid to a reluctant halt.

"Mikey! There you are!"

* * *

 **A/N: Don't worry! I plan on revealing the little skateboard trip later...**

 **I hope this was okay. It was a long week hahaha... I'm sorry for any mistakes ahead of time.**


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